Twilight Redux
by Louise-Anderson
Summary: A retelling of the story of Twilight. What happens when Bella Swan moves to Forks and finds herself at the mercy of a deranged stalker who may not be entirely human? Edward is extremely OOC and there is no love story between him and Bella. May change the rating to M as the story progresses.
1. Chapter 1

_Authors Note - This story will be extremely different from the real Twilight. I always liked the idea of Twilight but not how the actual story turned out. There will be romance, but this is not a love story. Fans of Edward will not enjoy this. Bella is also quite different. Actually, I'll be surprised if anyone that likes Twilight will enjoy this story! Either way, keep what I've said in mind. Enjoy! _

I rolled the car window down and leaned into the breeze that entered the car, cooling me down from the stifling heat. I rested my arm on the window frame and let the wind dance through my fingers. My body begin to relax.

"Bella, shut the damn window. The wind will mess up my hairstyle," a voice next to me snapped. I turned to the woman sitting behind the wheel and raised an eyebrow. She glanced at me and caught my expression before I could smooth my face into a blank state. "I won't ask you again."

I looked back to the road and rolled the window back up. The breeze cut off and the car became shockingly hot again. I felt myself tense up. My mother began to rub her head, I was sure she was feeling the effects of drinking last night, though she had carefully disguised any signs of a late night under a mask of thick foundation and concealer. Looking at Renee, my mother, I pawed through my carry-on bag that was between my feet and pulled out a small vanity mirror. I had heavy, purple bags under my own eyes, which clashed badly with my pale skin, making it look as though I had come out a loser in a fight. Mine weren't from a late night of alcohol though; they were from being woken up yet again by another insane argument between Renee and her latest husband, Phil. I frowned at my reflection. It didn't matter; I could grab a nap on the plane and put some concealer on afterwards. I shoved the mirror back into my bag.

"Bella, would you please stop fidgeting? I'm trying to concentrate," my mother winced at her own voice. I stifled the urge to snap back but we were near Phoenix airport and there was no point in beginning an argument when I was so close to being free.

_Free. _It felt melodramatic, calling my escape to Forks, Washington, from Phoenix, my chance for freedom but it was also the best word to describe it. In Forks I would more often than not be wearing thick jumpers and waterproof coats rather than shorts and t-shirts, but I didn't care. It was where my dad, Charlie, lived and with him the promise of a new beginning.

Happiness exploded within my chest, how long had it been since I had spent more than a few weeks with my father? I quickly clamped down on my emotions as I remembered where I was; Renee could turn this car around at the last second and call the whole thing off. She and Charlie may be on speaking terms now, but I wouldn't put it past her to bait my father with the thought of his only daughter to return, only to cruelly change her mind at the last second.

I sat as quietly as I could as the miles slipped by. My stomach began to flutter, a flutter which gained in strength every mile we got closer to the airport. When a sign declared that the airport was within 1 mile, I sat on my hands to stop my fingers from fidgeting uncontrollably.

_It's happening, it's really happening._ My heart beat hard and fast. We pulled into the parking lot and my mother found a space not too far from the entrance. My body was so tense that my stomach was beginning to ache with stress. My mother turned the car keys and the engine stopped, leaving us in silence. She didn't move toward her seatbelt, her hands tapped on the steering wheel impatiently. We sat for a minute in silence, refusing to look at one another, until the _click_ of my seatbelt releasing jolted Renee out of her reverie. I looked at her expectantly but she kept her eyes on the parked car in front of her.

"Do you need help with your suitcase?" she stared ahead, she sounded bored.

"No, I can manage," _look at me._

"Well," her wrist turned as she looked at her silver watch, a present from Phil. Her fingers kept tapping against the steering wheel, each tap felt like a chisel to my brain. "I'm sure you don't want to miss your flight and be stuck at the airport." I was sure she could feel the intensity of my gaze, my eyes boring into her temple as I willed her to look at me. She kept staring ahead, resolutely.

"Mom," I began, but she cut me off.

"Bella, you're wasting time-"

"_Mom-"_

"-I've got a _very_ important lunch to get to and you are not-"

"_Mom!"_

"-helping matters here-"

"_Look at me!" _the words burst from my mouth which I quickly clamped shut, shocked by the emotion in my voice. Her head turned and her eyes slowly met mine, blue meeting brown. She raised an eyebrow, but otherwise looked completely indifferent. I felt a throb within my chest. Was this all I was to her? An inconvenience?

"Aren't you going to come in and say goodbye to me?" my voice betrayed me and my eyes began to prick.

"You've taken a chunk out of my schedule already with me driving you here. I just don't have the time," she shrugged. "This was your choice."

My vision began to brighten and blur at the edges. I blinked quickly and swallowed hard against the lump that had risen in my throat. My chest throbbed as though someone was squeezing my heart. I swallowed again as she looked at me expectantly.

"So," I cleared my throat and found that my voice was, thankfully, steady. "That's it then? This is how we leave things?" She frowned at me and finally began to show an emotion – annoyance.

"Bella, this was your choice. You wanted to leave. You and that-that horrid man conspired against me and Philip. Actions have consequences, you have already wasted enough of my time this morning so get the hell out of my car before I drive out of this airport." She stabbed a finger at a button and I heard a deep _click_ as the trunk unlocked. Renee turned the ignition and the engine rumbled into life as I scrambled at my door handle and shoved it open, almost falling out of the door in my haste to leave. I grabbed my carry-on bag and ran to the back of the car, blood thumping in my ears. I wrenched the trunk open and pulled out my suitcase before slamming the trunk as hard as I could. I moved my luggage to the side of the car and Renee rolled her window down. My heart began to beat erratically. She tossed my plane ticket at me, which I fumbled and dropped onto the tarmac.

"Goodbye Bella," her mask of indifference was back on again. "Don't be ringing me begging to come home when you realise how much of a shit-pit Forks is, which shouldn't take too long to discover. Phil and I gave you everything you could ever want, and this is how you repaid us?" She snorted. "Charlie is welcome to you." I flinched at her words as they cut into me, leaving open wounds behind. My pulse beat loudly in my head as I saw her begin to roll the window up.

"No mom," she paused and looked at me with a raised eyebrow. "Buying expensive things doesn't show how good your life is. All you gave me was a broken home and unstable childhood. Chucking money at someone doesn't make up for your bad parenting. You couldn't give a _shit_ about me," I spat and she recoiled in shock. "And I deserve better." My words seemed to solidify in the air between us as years of unspoken resentment finally came to the fore. Renee's expression became enraged; she opened her mouth to say something but then shook her head, her red hair flicked about her face. The car roared as she put her foot down and accelerated out of the parking lot. I watched as she re-joined the road, and then she was gone.

I stood in the parking lot, next to my luggage, with tears rolling down my face. Yet I was laughing. My limbs felt lighter, as though I had been carrying a sack full of dumbbells on my back. I wiped my cheeks and picked up my things, not caring about the funny looks I was getting from people. I made my way to airport entrance, whole on the outside yet cut up within at my mother's rejection. My heart ached and my head replayed our confrontation over and over as I went through the standard airport protocol. By the time it was ready to board, I felt the beginnings of a new person within me.

I was damaged deeply, but my wounds would heal and I felt the first feeble stirrings of hope.

The flight from Phoenix to Seattle took four hours. I tried to distract myself with a vampire book I had bought at the airport, but I fell asleep only 20 minutes in. It wasn't very good anyway.

I had to get on another plane in Seattle to Port Angeles and this time I was too excited to sleep. In less than an hour I would be seeing Charlie for the first time in over a year. I'm sure I annoyed my seat-neighbour on the flight, I couldn't stop fidgeting. I would read my book, only to throw it down after a few minutes and try to read a magazine, but I wouldn't be able to concentrate so I'd try to listen to a bit of music, and then after five minutes, back to my book again. My seat neighbour gave me a frown after half an hour of this, and I gave him an apologetic smile. I sat still for all of two minutes and then grabbed my magazine again. The man sighed audibly and I'm sure I heard him mutter 'teenagers' before jamming a pair of headphones over his ears and blocking me out.

With only minutes before landing, my thoughts strayed to Charlie again. I had spoken to him on the phone last night and I had felt his excitement thousands of miles away that I was coming to live with him for good. He had already registered me in the local high school. We had this connection, deeper than a lot of relationships my friends had with their parents. Maybe it was because I rarely saw him, or maybe it was because the lack of care from my mom's side made me appreciate any little show of affection from Charlie, like an email just asking how school had been. It was strange to say at 17, but he wasn't just my father. He was my friend.

The plane touched down and I waited impatiently as the pilot went through his end-of-flight speech, thanking us for choosing this particular airline. I tapped my foot up and down as I waited for the people in front of me to shuffle off the plane. Walking through customs went by in a blur; I vaguely remember grabbing my luggage as I almost ran through the airport. At arrivals, I scanned the crowd rapidly until I saw him.

He was in his Police Chief uniform. I could see he had attempted to tame his unruly, black hair but to no avail. His face looked a little bit more lined since I had last seen him, but he still looked youthful and strong. I hurried towards him, dragging my suitcase behind me haphazardly. He caught sight of me and his face broke out into a huge smile. He pulled me into a hug as soon as I was near and the unspoken affection in this gesture almost broke me. I held onto him tightly and willed myself not to cry. He broke the hug and took a look at me.

"You've grown about a foot, Bells," he said, pulling me back into a quick embrace. "It's good to see you kid, how's Renee?" He said the words lightly, but at the sound of moms name I automatically stiffened.

"She's…fine. Same old. It's good to see you, dad." Charlie noticed the tone of my voice yet didn't say anything. Instead he took hold of my luggage and led me out of the airport. I saw that we were travelling in the police cruiser and had to stifle a laugh. At least if we hit traffic he could always put the lights on to speed things up a bit. Charlie put my suitcase in the trunk. I hadn't had much to pack. A lot of my clothes were more suited to the constant sunshine in Phoenix. I had dipped into my savings from a job I had had over the summer but I couldn't afford a large wardrobe.

We got into the car and sat in an amicable silence for a while. Charlie and I had always been like this, comfortable.

"I found a good car for you," Charlie broke the silence.

"A good car specifically _for _me, as opposed to just a good car?" I asked him, smirking. "What is it, bulletproof or something?"

"Maybe," he grinned. "Actually it's a truck, a Chevy. Do you remember Billy Black?" I cast my mind back a few years to the small Indian reservation on the coast.

"Billy from La Push?"

"That's the one. He can't drive anymore, he's in a wheelchair," Charlie said.

"Is he? That's crappy, how come?" I asked, remembering the friendly, strong Indian who used to take us on fishing trips when I was allowed to visit Charlie in Forks. I was also gauging Charlie's reaction to my slight cussing.

"Diabetes, it's _very_ crappy," Charlie smiled, but it didn't quite reach his eyes. "He's offered me to sell his truck, quite cheaply too."

"Seriously? For me?"

"Seriously. Billy's done work on the engine, the thing runs great," Charlie grinned at my enthusiasm.

"How much is it? We can run by a bank tomorrow, I've still got some savings-"

"Woah, woah, Bells. I've already bought it for you. As a homecoming gift," Charlie stared straight ahead at the road as I gaped at him. His neck began to flush red, which slowly crept up to his face.

"You bought me a truck, as a gift?" Charlie nodded, keeping his eyes on the road. I put a hand on his arm and squeezed it softly.

"Thank you, you really didn't need to do that," I whispered.

"You're welcome Bells, I want you to be happy." I left my hand on his arm for a moment longer before taking it away. We sat in silence for the rest of the car ride. I watched the scenery change as everything became green, the land was thick with moss-covered trees and there were ferns covering every bit of ground anywhere I turned. The air was drizzling with rain and there was a slight mist above the ground.

Everything looked alive.

We finally got to Charlie's and I felt a rush of pleasure when I recognised the two-bedroom house that I had once lived in. It was much smaller than the house back in Phoenix, but that had always felt cold and unwelcoming. This house felt more like home, even though the amount of time I had spent here wasn't even a year. Parked in front of the house was my new truck, faded red and almost obnoxiously large. I loved it immediately.

"It looks amazing!" I exclaimed, whilst Charlie went red with embarrassment again. "Thank you so much!" Charlie smiled and looked away.

It only took Charlie and I a single trip to get all my stuff indoors and upstairs. I got the bedroom that had always belonged to me, the one that looked over the front yard. It was a blue room with a wooden floor, with a new (second-hand) computer on my old desk and an empty bookshelf opposite my bed. There was an old rocking chair in the corner.

There was a small bathroom at the top of the stairs that I would have to share with Charlie, but I didn't mind. I hardly doubted he would get freaked out over the inclusion of feminine hygiene products in the bathroom cupboard, though he might get annoyed with the amount of hair products I had. I had come prepared for the weather in Forks, and what it would most likely do to my hair.

Charlie left me alone to get unpacked but told me he'd be ordering a pizza for our dinner later. I lay back on my new (old) bed and relaxed. I stared at the empty bookshelf and made a mental note to go shopping as soon as I could and get some more books, I had left that vampire one on the airplane. It had only cost $3 anyway and really wasn't worth reading. I hadn't been able to take all my books with me and I doubted Renee would send them over. Still, I could always email her and ask.

My thoughts began to wander and the image of me alone in high school tomorrow came unbidden to my mind. At Forks High School there were only three hundred and fifty-seven students, not including their latest arrival – me. Compared to back in Phoenix, there were more than seven hundred students in my junior class alone. It was with a pang that I thought of my old friends, Zoey and Lily in particular, but teenage life could be fickle. I had a feeling that though we would probably try and keep in contact for a few months, my refusal to go home would cause problems within our friendships and our emails would slowly become non-existent. Sad, but seemingly inevitable. I was sure I could find at least a few friends here. I got up, even though I was ready to fall asleep, and began to put my clothes away in a pine dresser. I put all my bathroom necessities away too, and it amused me to see how cramped all my hair products made the cupboard look. I cleaned myself up and went back to my room, gazing out of the window.

The thought of school tomorrow made my stomach cramp with nerves and I had to admit to myself that I was scared of not fitting in. I was _terrified_ of not fitting in. Though I had a good friend group back in Phoenix, I had noticed in the past few years that I'd grown up a lot. I seemed to be a lot more mature than people my age, but I suppose that was to be expected, living with my home life. I thought back to all the arguments there had been over the years, all the pain, the few times Renee had thrown me out for a couple of days (not that I had ever told Charlie that). It was so much better that I was here but I still let a few tears out for the life that could have been. On some level I wondered if I had deserved the mistreatment, but I firmly clamped down on those feelings before they could multiply and needle into my brain.

"Bella, dinner will be here soon!" Charlie called up from downstairs. I jumped and wiped my face, embarrassed that I had let my negativity get to me again.

"Coming," I turned away from the window and headed downstairs to fully embrace my new life, my salvation, my happiness.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: So this chapter is pretty much like Twilight, it's Bella's first day at school, blahblahblah. A few things have been changed, Bella's attitude to everyone else is quite different because I found that she was just rude in the book. Also her reaction to Edward is different. Hope you all enjoy!

When I awoke the next morning I had to blink several times.

_Snow? _I thought, as I jumped out of bed and raced to the window. To my relief, I saw that it hadn't snowed, but a thick white fog had descended upon the house. I grimaced at the thought of driving in the fog, especially in a car I wasn't used to, but I put my worries on hold as I got ready for breakfast.

I took longer than I normally would to get dressed, partly because I thought it would give the fog a chance to disperse, and partly because I was beginning to feel nervous about school again. I chewed my lip distractedly as I tried to pick what to wear. I chose some jeans and a thick, baggy jumper before realising that my lips were now chapped and sore.

"Damn," I muttered, before putting some chap on them. I took a long time to do my make-up – even though I don't wear that much – and thanked whatever gods might be listening that I had the foresight to buy waterproof mascara. Finally, I could put it off no longer, and I walked downstairs to the kitchen.

"Hey Bells," Charlie was sitting at the small, oak table reading a newspaper. His breakfast of bacon and fried eggs were barely touched. "You sleep okay?"

"Yeah, great thanks," I mumbled and began to look through the fridge for something to eat. I noticed a distinct lack of fruit and vegetables. That would have to change.

"Well you look better," he nodded to himself before getting back to his paper. "There's some bacon left in the pan, it should still be warm."

"Thanks," I took a few slices and sat on other side of the table. Neither of us spoke; Charlie was engrossed in his paper and I was busy pushing the bacon around my plate. My stomach felt fluttery again. Finally, Charlie put his paper down and ate the rest of his breakfast so fast that it made me feel even queasier.

"Okay Bells, I've gotta run. You have a good day at school, alright? If any boys think they can be funny, you just remind them that I've got a gun." He smiled, but I could see he was only half joking. I almost snorted into my bacon, which made some of the tension in my body ease up.

"I'll do that," I smirked. Charlie nodded at me and then left. I inspected the kitchen to delay my inevitable leave for school; it hadn't changed much. The cabinets were still an eye watering yellow, from where my mother had painted them years ago. The paint was peeling a bit; I made a mental note to ask Charlie if I could freshen them up with a new coat. There was no door to divide the family room and kitchen, so I could see straight into it. There was still the same fireplace, though the pictures on the mantel had changed. Gone were the wedding photos of Renee and Charlie, in their place were baby pictures of me and some recent school photos that were taken in Phoenix. I grimaced at my gawky smile in them. There was also a picture of Charlie, in his fishing gear and holding up a large fish, with a huge, cheesy grin on his face. It made me smile looking at it.

When I couldn't possibly stay in the house anymore without risking being late on my first day, I put on a jacket and went outside.

The air was cold and moist but it was barely drizzling. I saw that a lot of the fog was gone too. I locked up and admired my truck for a second. I gave it a friendly pat on the bonnet, like it was a big, red dog, and I got in.

The truck was really clean on the inside, Billy or Charlie had done a good job with it, though I could still faintly smell tobacco if I pressed my nose to the leather seats. The truck roared to life, this baby was loud as though it wanted everyone to know where it was.

"You obnoxious truck," I said to the steering wheel fondly. I would have to think of a good name for it. We set off. I found that the old radio player worked, though the heavy metal music I found from one radio station didn't help appease my nerves.

It didn't take long to find the school; it was just off the highway. It didn't look like any school I'd seen before; instead of a few large buildings there were what appeared to be a collection of smaller, sprawling buildings with trees and bushes here and there.

"This doesn't look so bad," I said to my truck, which thankfully ignored me. I parked in front of the nearest building. From here I could see a sign next to the door saying 'front office'. I didn't want to part with my truck when it was so warm, but I gave the steering wheel a pat and jumped out. I walked briskly to the building and yanked open the door.

It was warm inside, so I closed to the door behind me quickly to prevent the heat escaping. There was a little waiting area with chairs and a long counter that cut the room in half. Notices and awards adorned the walls and there was a loud clock ticking away.

_Bet that gets annoying_, I thought, as a bespectacled lady from behind the counter looked up and spotted me. With eye contact made, I approached her, behaving a lot more confidently than I felt.

"Can I help you?" she said, distracted with what looked to be folders of paperwork.

"My name's Bella Sw-I mean, Isabella Swan," I told her. She frowned as she didn't recognise my name, so I prompted her further. "I'm meant to be starting today. I just moved here." Awareness slowly dawned in her eyes.

"Oh yes, sorry dear, it's just mad around here right now," she smiled at me before diving into the many documents on her desk. She resurfaced after a minute. "Here's your schedule, and a map of the school." She passed me a few sheets of paper and began to go through my classes, showing me where each class was and which would be the best route to take. She also gave me a slip for my teachers to sign, that I would have to return at the end of the day.

"You got all that? If you do get a bit lost then just ask another student for help, but I'm sure you'll be fine," she smiled at me. "Have a good day!"

"Okay, thank you," I smiled back, warmed at how helpful she had been. I left the office and got back into my truck, relieved to see that other students had begun to arrive. I followed a blue car to the main school car park and got into a spot as quick as I could. I sat in my truck for a moment to get myself together, and noticed that one car, a shiny Volvo, stood out above all the others. There was no one in it, so my attention was drawn back to looking at my map. I couldn't make sense of all the squiggly lines that the lady from the office had drawn over it, so I stuffed it into my bag, annoyed.

"I can do this," I told my truck. "Not a big talker, are you?" The truck stayed silent and I groaned at myself. _The last thing I need is for someone to notice I'm talking to my truck. I'm so embarrassing._

I sighed at myself, yanked my jacket hood up and got out to trudge along the sidewalk behind a group of teenagers. I followed them around the cafeteria and they began to disperse. I felt myself begin to panic, but then I noticed a building with a large, black 3 painted on the corner of it. Feeling calmer, I followed two people through the door and into a small classroom. I saw a long row of hooks where people were hanging up their coats. I hung up mine and went to the front desk where the teacher was.

He was a tall, balding man whose name was Mr Mason, according to his nameplate. He took my slip and signed it.

"Pleased to meet you Isabella, I'm Mr Mason and if you have any problems then don't hesitate to talk to me," he smiled. He handed my slip back and turned back to his computer, dismissing me. I sat in an empty desk at the back and looked through the reading list whilst the other students were settling down. There was Faulkner, Shakespeare…I read through the list and barely noticed it when a boy sat down in the desk next to me.

"Hi," he said. I jumped in my seat and flushed red.

"Sorry, didn't mean to scare you," he quickly amended.

"You surprised me, that's all," I put down the reading list and had a look at my desk neighbour. He was tall and thin, with dark black hair that was smoothed back with gel.

"I'm Eric," he said, thrusting out his hand.

"I'm Bella," I told him, trying not to laugh as he shook my hand like he was the president or something. A few people looked round curiously but turned their heads back to the front of the room as Mr Mason began his lesson.

The lesson dragged on, but finally the bell rang. As I was packing up my work, Eric turned to face me.

"Where's your next class?"

I pulled out my timetable. "Government, in building six with Jefferson."

"Well, I'm going to building four, but I could show you the way?" he smiled. "If you want, of course."

"Actually, that would be great. Thanks." I smiled back. We got our jackets and went outside. The rain had picked up, so people were scurrying to their next class before they could get soaked.

"How are you enjoying Forks so far?" Eric asked, as we strode through the small puddles that were beginning to accumulate. "Must be different from Phoenix."

I glanced at him, and he quickly said, "We were told a student was moving from Phoenix."

"Yeah. Well, it's pretty different. Sunshine is overrated anyway."

"You don't look very tan," he said.

"I'm part vampire. Being pale is part of our allure," I smirked. He laughed, and his mirth eased up the awkwardness which comes with meeting someone new. Our small talk was relaxed as he walked me past the cafeteria, to the south buildings by the gym. He insisted on walking me to the door, though I told him he'd be late for his lesson.

"Do you want to sit with me at lunch? I can introduce you to some of my friends," he said, just before I entered the building.

"Yeah, that'll be cool."

"Cool," he echoed. "Have a good day, see you at lunch."

I smiled to myself as I went inside.

Government was pretty uneventful. I didn't talk to anyone and felt too self-conscious to ask someone for directions to Trigonometry afterwards, but I managed by myself. The Trigonometry teacher, Mr Varner, made me introduce myself to rest of the class. My life seemed to flash before my eyes as I stood up before the classroom and mumbled something about my name and Phoenix, before walking back to my desk and slumping into my seat.

"Hey," a girl with dark, curly hair in the desk next to me whispered. "Good going up there, Varner _always_ makes the new kids do that."

I looked at the girl and frowned. "Seriously? What an asshole."

The girl clamped a hand to her mouth to stop herself from giggling. "I'm Jess," she said.

"I believe I've introduced myself already," I rolled my eyes at her and smirked. She giggled again.

Jessica had Spanish with me after Trig, so we walked together to the next lesson. She asked lots of questions about Phoenix.

"It's just, this weather," she grimaced. "We get nice weather sometimes, but it's hell on your hair." She fingered a curl with distaste.

Jess was easy to talk to. She talked a _lot,_ but I tried to keep up with everything she was saying.

After Spanish, we walked to the cafeteria together. We sat on a table full of her friends. I was pleased to see Eric was at the table.

"Hey Bella, good day so far?" he asked.

"Oh, you've met Eric already?" Jess interrupted before I could answer Eric.

"Yeah, he's in my English class." I turned back to Eric. "Today's been good, it's been…" I trailed off as I noticed a group of five sitting in the corner of the cafeteria.

They were as far away from the other students as possible. Each of them had a tray full of food, untouched. I couldn't see them talking to each other, they appeared to be sat in silence, staring at one another.

There were three boys. One of them was huge, like a body builder, with dark, curly hair. Another was taller yet still muscular and had golden blonde hair. They both looked as though they should be in college; they looked too old to be students. The last boy was definitely younger looking; he was lanky, with bronze hair. He was frowning at his plate of pizza.

The other two were girls. One looked like a beauty Queen, or a pageant model, with golden silky hair that curled gently down her back. She had an athletic figure that still retained femininity. The other girl was tiny, both in height and weight. She was extremely thin, with short black hair and a pixie-like face.

They were all different in appearance, and yet they all looked similar. All of them were pale, almost the colour of chalk, and much paler than me. They all had dark eyes, and purplish shadows underneath those eyes, like they hadn't slept. All of their features were angular, not a crooked nose in sight. They were all incredibly beautiful, more suited to a fashion shoot than a school cafeteria.

Their stunning looks were almost entrancing, and I found myself unable to stop staring. The pixie-girl got up and moved so smoothly and gracefully, she dumped her tray of uneaten food and left the cafeteria. I blinked and shook my head.

"Earth to Bella," Eric said, cheerfully. I looked back at him and flushed.

"Sorry, I was…distracted?" I mumbled, feeling a bit disorientated.

"I think," Jess said, smirking. "Bella has just noticed the Cullens."

"What?" I said thickly.

Eric rolled his eyes and began to eat his lunch, making a face as he did so. It was a resigned look that clearly said this topic of conversation had come up too many times.

"The Cullens," Jess began, "are those guys over there. There's Edward and Emmett Cullen, and Rosalie and Jasper Hale. The girl who just left was Alice Cullen. They're a big, happy family."

"Why are they called the Cullens if two of them have the last name Hale?" I asked, confused.

"Because all of them were adopted by Dr. Cullen and his wife. The Hales are brother and sister, twins, but the others aren't related."

"Oh," I looked up at over at the Cullens, the youngest one had begun to pick apart his bagel. _Guess they aren't a fan of cafeteria food, _I thought.

"They're all together, and they live together," Jess said, and I looked back at her sharply.

"What?"

"Emmett and Rosalie are dating, and so are Jasper and Alice. It's weird."

"That is a bit odd," I agreed.

"Also, Dr. Cullen is like, really young. He can't be on the wrong side of 30. Mrs Cullen is Jasper and Rosalie's aunt or something and they've been with her since they were young. I don't think she can have kids."

"Have they always lived here?"

"No, they moved down two years ago from Alaska."

"And they just…stay together? Don't they have any friends?" I asked, curious now.

"Not really," Jess sniffed. "They barely talk to anyone else or socialize."

"Huh, that sounds…arrogant," I said, watching the youngest. He looked up and my eyes met his. I stared back, shocked and embarrassed that I had been caught observing him. He frowned slightly, and I looked away, back to Jess, feeling shaky inside.

"Which one is the guy with the brown hair, the young one?" I asked, glancing back at him. He was still staring and frowning openly at me. It was odd and made me feel uneasy. I frowned back at him, and he looked away reluctantly.

"That's Edward. He's the only one that's single, but apparently he doesn't date. He doesn't seem to think any of the girls here are good enough for him," Jess grumbled.

"Well, he may be good looking," Jess raised an eyebrow at me, "okay, extremely good looking, but he sounds like an ass. And who wants to date an ass, no matter how attractive they are?" I said, hoping it would appease her. It seemed to work, as she laughed softly and brightened up.

The four of them left after we finished our discussion. They were all graceful, inhumanely so, and it made me feel edgy watching them.

We joined in with the rest of the tables conversation, Eric seemed happy that the topic of the Cullens was over. I spoke to a girl named Angela, who had Biology II with me after lunch. When lunch was over, we walked to Biology together, making light conversation as she seemed quite shy.

When we entered the classroom, Angela went to sit at a lab table whilst I walked to the teacher to introduce myself. I scanned the classroom as the teacher, Mr Banner, signed my slip. All the tables were full, except for one. At that table sat Edward Cullen, who was staring at me. His features began to tighten and I saw him stiffen. I looked at him, bewildered, before turning back to Mr Banner, who handed me back my slip and a book.

"If you take that empty seat we can begin our lesson," he said, and I turned back to glance at Edward. As I walked slowly towards the table, I saw Edward look at me with disbelief, and then open hostility. He looked ferocious, like a snake about to bite. Alarm bells went off in my head and my brain began screaming at me to get out of the classroom, now! But I couldn't. I gently slid into the chair next to him and stared straight ahead at the front of the classroom whilst my heart beat frantically.

Something was really wrong with this boy.

The lesson started. The lecture was on cellular anatomy. I had already studied this, but I wrote my notes carefully to try and make the lesson go faster. Every second seemed to drag and I was aware that Edward was so tense and frigid that all the oxygen seemed to be sucked out of the air. Halfway through the lesson, I glanced at Edward. He sat as far away from me as possible. He had crossed his arms and his hands were tightly gripping his forearms, so tightly that the tendons were standing out under his skin. I wanted to say something, demand to know what the hell was up with him, but my throat had closed up. Somehow, I managed to drag my attention away from him and back to the lesson. I tried hard to focus on my notes but I felt stunned by this strange boy's behaviour.

Near the end of the lesson, I peeked up at him again. His cold eyes met mine and I saw, with some horror, that they weren't just dark, they were _black_. There was no warmth in them, only hatred and a strange longing look, like hunger. Some primal instinct of mine screamed at me to get away from this person, that he was _dangerous_, but I was completely frozen. I could barely breathe as his black eyes came closer to mine. He moved forward. My heart slowed as he neared me, his body a foot from mine as he reached out to touch me.

The bell rang loudly, and I jumped. My heart began to beat again, unbearably fast as adrenaline pumped through my body. Edward shot up out of his seat, and was out the door in second. I gasped and tried to get my breathing under control. My hands shook as I gathered my things and I dropped my book because my fingers would not still. I bent down to get my book but someone picked it up and handed it to me. I looked up to see a cute, blonde haired boy, who was smiling at me.

"Hi, I'm Mike."

I tried to speak but my throat felt oddly hoarse and dry.

"Are you Bella Swan?" He prompted for me, slightly confused when I didn't respond. I cleared my throat.

"Y-yeah," my voice sounded shaky. I cleared my throat again. "Yeah," that was better. "Sorry, sore throat. I'm Bella."

"I was wondering if you needed help finding your next class?" he asked politely.

"Yeah, I, uh-"I fumbled with my bag to find my timetable, mentally willing my fingers to stop trembling so much. I finally got my timetable and had a look at it. "I've got gym. I know where the gym is though."

"That's my next class too, want to walk together?" he grinned.

"Sure, okay," I said. I gathered up my stuff and we walked to gym together. Mike was nice and chatty, which was good because my heart still hadn't quite got back into its normal pace yet and I was trying to calm down. _What the hell was wrong with Cullen? Why did I react so badly? _I shuddered at the memory of it. Mike noticed my behaviour, and stopped talking about the time he lived in California.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah, sort of. It's just," I wondered if I should say anything, but Mike's happy face seemed inviting. "You know the boy I was next to? Edward Cullen?"

"Yeah," his face fell a little; I could see he wasn't keen on Edward.

I faltered and began to doubt my memory's version of events. Maybe I had imagined the hostility, maybe it was just me being over-imaginative. But then the image of Edward's furious face came unbidden to my mind, and my insides steeled at the thought of it.

"What the hell's wrong with him?" there was so much venom in my voice that Mike flinched. But then, for some reason, he began to look pretty happy again.

"How do you mean?" He asked cheerfully.

"He was staring at me and acting like a freak,"

"I noticed," Mike said, ignoring my raised eyebrow as I realised that Mike must have been looking at me during class. "I thought you'd stabbed him with a pencil or something. Not that I would blame you. The guy's just a freak."

"It wasn't very nice."

"To tell you the truth," he lowered his voice. "Most of the girls round here think Edward is 'dreamy', but the guy gives me the creeps." He looked a bit ashamed at his confession.

"Don't worry, he creeps me out too," Mike brightened at this. We got to the gym and headed our separate ways for the locker rooms. I spent the next hour attempting to play volleyball and take my mind off of Edward. It only half worked.

As the final bell rang, I sighed with relief and felt incredibly weary. My first day had felt like a week. I got changed in the locker room and walked back to the office to return all my paperwork. The wind was stronger, icy fingers clawed at me and tried to rip all my paperwork away from my hands. I gripped it tighter to my chest and briskly walked the rest of the way.

I walked into the office and closed my eyes for a second, delighted at how warm it was inside. I opened my eyes and my heart almost stopped. There, stood at the desk in front of me, was the back of Edward Cullen. I could hear him arguing with the receptionist about changing sixth-hour Biology.

_So I hadn't imagined it. He actually is insane._

I began to debate leaving the office and waiting for Edward to go, but as I hesitated the door opened and a blast of cold wind came into the room, washing over my face and hair. Edward visibly stiffened, and turned around, his eyes finding mine. There was that hatred again, that cut through me. My heart began to beat rapidly, and I felt fear for my life. Without another word Edward left the office. I swore I could hear him growling slightly.

"What on earth-"the receptionist began, but then stopped as she saw me. She swapped her confused look for a friendly one. "Yes?"

I walked steadily to the desk and handed her my paperwork. When she asked how my day was, I vaguely mumbled something, before stumbling outside. I almost ran to my truck. Today had lasted a lifetime. I sat inside the truck for a while, my thoughts dull and blank. I felt numb to the cold. I blinked and shook my head. I tried to make some sense of what had happened, but there was none.

"Forget about it," I spoke through gritted teeth. "If that freak has a problem with me, then it's his fucking problem." I started the engine and began to drive home. I told myself over and over that he was just a weird boy, that there was nothing more to it than that. But a small part of me knew better.

_Danger_, it whispered. _That man is dangerous. _

I turned up the radio to drown out my thoughts and sped all the way home.


End file.
